Hut 8 Maps 'Path to Monetization' of Energy Assets as Bitcoin Mining Carve-Out Nears: Benchmark

What to know:

• Broker Benchmark raised its Hut 8 price target to $36 from $33 and reiterated its buy rating on the stock.
• Hut 8 Tuesday announced 1.53 GW of new U.S. energy capacity under development, more than doubling its total to 2.55 GW, the report noted.
• With $2.4 billion in liquidity, Hut 8 is positioning itself as an energy infrastructure pure-play, the broker said, securing cheaper financing and offering exposure to both bitcoin and AI/HPC growth.

Hut 8 (HUT) is set to spin out most of its bitcoin mining operations into American Bitcoin (ABTC) within the next week, a move that Benchmark analyst Mark Palmer said could re-rate the company’s shares.

Yesterday, Hut 8 unveiled plans to develop 1.53 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity across four U.S. sites, in Louisiana, Texas and Illinois, more than doubling its power under management to 2.55 GW.

Palmer raised Hut 8's price target to $36 from $33 and reiterated his buy rating on the stock. The new price target suggests nearly 40% upside from yesterday's close just below $26.

Palmer noted the update was significant because it showed a clear path to monetizing Hut 8’s energy pipeline, with the company already securing land and power agreements, building infrastructure and negotiating with potential customers.

By separating its mining operations into ABTC, Hut 8 aims to position itself as an energy infrastructure pure-play, giving it better access to cheaper project financing by avoiding the volatility tied to bitcoin revenues, the analyst said.

The company has up to $2.4 billion in liquidity to support the expansion, including $1.2 billion in bitcoin, $330 million in credit facilities and a $1 billion equity program, the report noted.

Hut 8 is a flexible bet on both bitcoin and the artificial intelligence (AI)/high performance computing (HPC) boom, Palmer said.